According to Dr. Barak Monikandam-Givaon and Thila Lieberman, the dig managers on behalf of the Antiquities Authority: "The barbell is made in the shape of a dome with a flat base. At the top of the weight is carved a sign that resembles the letter E, an Egyptian sign that represents an abbreviation of the word 'shekel', and next to it are two lines indicating two shekels
A weight worth two shekels, from 2700 years ago (the Iron Age - the time of the First Temple), was discovered near the Western Wall in Jerusalem. The weight, which is made of limestone, was recently uncovered during a careful screening of the dirt coming out of the excavations of the Antiquities Authority in the Wilson Arch, adjacent to the Western Wall. The Authority's excavations are taking place in collaboration with the Western Wall Heritage Foundation, in preparation for the entrance of visitors to a new and fascinating tour of the Wall tunnels. The screening of the dirt during which the dumbbell was found takes place as part of the screening project of the El Ir David association, in the Emek Zurim National Park.
Mordechai (Soli) Eliav, CEO of the Western Wall Heritage Foundation, said: "How exciting to find in the month of Tishrei, whose symbol is Libra-Zedek, a distant souvenir from the days of the First Temple. Precisely in these days, when access to the Western Wall is limited due to the Corona epidemic, the find strengthens the eternal connection between the Jewish people and Jerusalem and the Western Wall, and encourages us all."
According to Dr. Barak Monikandam-Givaon and Thila Lieberman, the dig managers on behalf of the Antiquities Authority: "The barbell is made in the shape of a dome with a flat base. At the top of the weight is carved a sign that resembles the letter E, an Egyptian sign that represents an abbreviation of the word 'shekel', and next to it are two lines indicating two shekels. The weight weighs 23 grams, and we know from previous findings from Jerusalem that the weight of a single shekel is about 11.5 grams - after all, we have an exact weight of two shekels. The accuracy of the weight indicates the technological capabilities, as well as the importance attributed to the accuracy of the weights in ancient Jerusalem." According to the archaeologists, "In this period there was no use of silver coins, so accurate weight played a very important role in the trading system. The women and men who walked around with this weight, went shopping here in the ancient Jerusalem of 2,700 years ago, and with its help they measured and weighed on the scales exact quantities of spices or foods in the market." Monikandam-Givaon and Lieberman add that "the system of shekel weights was used in the first temple, where they collected an annual tax of half the shekel for the use of the temple and sacrifices".
Excavation at Wilson's Arch is being carried out adjacent to the Western Wall, where every day more stones are being uncovered from the Wall, which have not been seen for 1800 years. The renewed excavation at the site continues the previous excavation at the Wilson Arch under the direction of Tehila Lieberman, Dr. Joe Uziel and Dr. Avi Salomon. "The unique find, which is found in a complex that dates back to the Roman period, shows that the Western Wall area is full of finds from diverse periods, some of them very ancient," add Monikandam-Givaon and Lieberman.
"You can easily imagine the area of the Temple Mount crowded with people during the holidays and the pilgrimage. Beyond the needs of the temple purchased by the immigrants: sacrifices, offerings, etc., they also purchased for themselves food, basic necessities and souvenirs from the journey to the temple in Jerusalem. This weight was probably used in one of the hawkers of Jerusalem during the days of the First Temple, and with it they saw that the hawker provided the buyer with a fair price. Although, unusually, this year the Western Wall area was not crowded with people during the holiday, but this stone weight is a reminder that already in the days of the First Temple it was a central area bustling with activity," say the researchers.
More of the topic in Hayadan:
4 תגובות
Herzl:
Every "shekel" in the Bible is a silver shekel.
With all due respect, since when did Kashi and Rif have any idea about values and values many hundreds of years after formulating weight or money values. More than once I was left laughing (sorry) at Rashi's reference to terms and words that appear in the Babylonian Talmud, since the Jerusalem Talmud and other midrashim were not at all placed before him, it was said about the musical rake in the temple, in reference to various taxes and charges, to sports activities and so forth. Let's not forget that those rabbis judged and evaluated words and terms in the light of the time of their activity, the place of their activity and of course in the light of their imagination. As once, years ago, Prof. Shmuel Safrai joked to my teacher and rabbi, in light of the controversy that ran between archeological diggers in Jerusalem who "discovered" in one of the caves proof of the existence of wireless in the ancient era. Wireless... the listeners will be surprised. And their answer - yes, yes, because no wires were found there at all. And by the way, a complete waste...
A. "A barbell worth two shekels"??? Maybe a barbell that weighs two shekels.
B. "Annual tax of half the shekel" - does it mean that they took weights of half a shekel as tax? of course not. If so, is this half a gold shekel? Of money? cotton? bread? Help a little for those who don't know.
third. Ladan: Maybe read the article before you respond?
Since it is a barbell, I wonder what its weight is (in grams)
It is interesting to compare with the halachic determinations
Which as far as I understand varies between 14.6 (according to Rashi) and 17 (according to the RIF) grams to a single shekel.